The Story of How Entitlements Reached 200% of GDP<\/p>\n
By Robert Folsom Seventy-five years of positive mood trend has entrenched the idea that the state can afford to support an ever-expanding percentage of its citizens, including even the more affluent<\/em>.<\/p>\n –Alan Hall, May 2012 Socionomist<\/em><\/p>\n Please take a moment and think about that sentence with me. It offers a wealth of information already, yet it’s even more instructive to consider what happens if you delete the first major premise. Here’s what I mean:<\/p>\n The state can afford to support an ever-expanding percentage of its citizens, including even the more affluent<\/em>.<\/p>\n That is a straightforward claim. And the truth is, at least two generations of Americans agreed with the claim enough to vote in legislators who acted on it.<\/p>\n Now, what I removed from the sentence was the reason<\/strong> for the claim. Because the point I wish to make is, some reasons make more sense than others<\/strong>. For example, the original sentence could have said this:<\/p>\n America is a rich country, so the state can afford to support an ever-expanding percentage of its citizens, including even the more affluent<\/em>.<\/p>\n But that’s not satisfying or even credible. America has always<\/strong> been a rich country. But it has not<\/strong> always had Federal entitlement programs, much less so many of them that they amount to 200% of GDP<\/strong>.<\/p>\n So, if the question is:<\/p>\n How and why could Americans ever think that straightforward claim was true?…<\/strong><\/p>\n …Then socionomics offers a uniquely credible AND satisfying answer. It’s worth your time to understand that answer in full — and to get your head around the forecast that comes with it. The entitlement state as we know it may well be about to enter a very different future.<\/p>\n
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